KP: All For You
by Mobius97
Summary: Rewrite Kim and Ron face new challanges as they enter college. To top it off a new team is in the area and they are playing for keeps. Will Team Possible be able to stop them before they go to far? Chap6 is finally up.
1. Prologue

I do not own Kim Possible or any other associated characters. This is done for fun not profit.

A/N: Ok this is the first time I've posted a story to FanFiction. I'm still learning the whole process, so if something screwy happens let me know.

This is a rewrite of the story. I wasn't happy with the way certain areas had turned out as well as some of the story progression.

This story runs under the idea that Ron and Kim were juniors in STD. There is a serious amount of fluff in the first few chapters as well as a ton of new characters.

Reviews both positive and critical are welcome, can't get better if you don't know what you've done wrong. If you feel the need to flame please send it to me as an email, I don't wish to expose it to those reading the reviews. Enjoy.

* * *

The sun was shining down without as much as a cloud in sight. It was looking like one of those perfect days you see in the movies. _What a great day_ the young man thought as he lifted his face towards the sky. The rays warmed his already tanned face. Looking around he saw the older man on the ground before him, a sneer forming on his lips. _Oh yes what a great day indeed_. He watched as the man crawled on his knees, the sweat running down his face and arms. The sun was beginning to take its toll, soon it would be over. The man paused, and looked up at the youth his eyes sharpening. 

"You should be the one down here not me." He grunted in exhaustion.

"You know you look better working on the ground then I do." The young man stated as he broke into a huge grin. "Of course you look better on the ground then I do period."

"Keep it up and you'll find out how fast the ground can come at you."

The young man looked around the yard he was working in with his father, so much done and yet so much to do. The sweat once again was rolling into his eyes, taking a moment; he swiped at it, no sense in going blind before he got done. He went back to mixing the cement. "Hey, how does this look, it still seems a little thick."

"Just a sec." His father said putting the last stake into the form. "Ok, let's take a look. That's perfect; the forms are done so just start pouring."

The sound of a door closing caught his attention. Turning back towards the house he saw a sight that always brought a smile to his face. Yeah, it was looking to be a great day.

As the saying goes all good things must come to an end, even great days. In the movies music would start to play as a shrill high pitched beeping began, or a car would come rushing into the driveway, or something else to give warning, but this was reality.

There was simply heat, lots and lots of heat, and a noise that was beyond imagination. One moment the house was sitting there on a perfect sunny day, the next it was just… gone. The blast flung the young man across the yard, only stopping when he traveled into the chain link fence. He had no final thought, no revelations, this was after all reality.

At that same moment around the city identical explosions sounded off. This was no random event; it was a planned attack; which made its effects even more horrifying.


	2. Chapter 1

The sun was shining down without so much as a cloud in sight; it was the type of day that was for want of a better term, Perfect. The building standing before her was relatively new based on its design and general layout. Nothing special about this building, so why was she continuing to stand there staring at it. The building wasn't the problem, it was what the building represented, it represented an ending, and a beginning. "I can do this, really, no big, so not the drama. Wrong," Kim sighed. "So the Drama."

A crash followed by an "AWWWW MAN" brought her back to the task at hand. Turning she saw the reason for the whine, there on the ground lay Ron partially in and under a pile of boxes and bags next to a moving cart. The sight brought a giggle to Kim's lips.

"Uh KP, instead of standing there laughing, could you give me a hand." As he struggled to unbury himself. "Uh huh uh huh" a muffled voiced chipped in.

"Sorry Ron" Kim bent down and began moving boxes. As she did she looked at the young blond boy, man. H_ow much he has changed in the last year _she thought. He had grown at least 2 inches and begun to fill in his loose fitting clothes. While he had matured, a lot, he was still the easy going guy she had been friends with since forever.

Finally scrambling out from under the last of the pile he stood up and glared back at it, Rufus joined him in his glare. "I thought it would be more stable." He began restacking the boxes on the cart, this time trying his hardest to make sure they wouldn't fall again.

"At least we aren't in a hurry, although unpacking is going to take forever." Kim smiled picking up the last bag.

"To true, no need to rush on such a beautiful day, one needs time to stop and just enjoy." Taking a deep breath of the late summer air. "Ahhhhhhhh"

Giggling again Kim walked towards the door; Ron slowly pushed the cart following her. She had changed over the previous year and yet not. Still there was the innocent girl who would give him the puppy dog pout to get what she wanted, but now it was mixed with a strong, confident woman. Not that the girl hadn't also been strong and confident he thought.

Moving into the building they saw several other students moving about filling out papers, moving boxes and bags, and cleaning up. "Looks like we got here at the right time, not many people. I'll get the paper work, you find the elevator."

"You got it." Replied Ron as he moved deeper into the building.

"Hi, I'm Kimberly Possible." Stopping in front the registration desk. "What do I need to fill out?"

The man behind the desk quickly began to run his finger down a check list. "Possible… Possible, ah here we are Possible, Kimberly Ann." His eyebrow rose slightly. "Ok, all I need for you to do is sign here." Pointing to a blank space on the sheet. "And here you go." Handing over a folder with two different keys on top. "The folder has all of the information about this Residents Hall, the larger key is for your room and building access, and the smaller one is for your mailbox. If you have any other questions the office will be open at 6."

"Thank you." She turned to follow after Ron only to find him standing behind her. "I thought I asked you to find the elevator." She placed her hands on her hips.

"I did find the elevator Kim, but there's a problem."

"You didn't tip the cart again did you?" Her arms sagging slightly.

"No, nothing like that, it's just that the elevator is out of order. So I figured I'd get my paperwork done now and then worry about getting the stuff up the stairs." He flashed her one of his goofy grins. "Now if you'll excuse me. Pardon my good man but I believe you need me to sign some papers." The man looked up. "Perhaps you've heard of me, the names Stoppable, Ron Stoppable."

The man rolled his eyes and scanned his list. "Sign here." As he reached for another folder and two keys.

"BOO YAH" Ron snatched the keys and folder. "Time to get moved in."

Sighing with a slight smile on her face Kim turned heading for the cart. "Let's see if you are as excited when we have to move all of those bags and boxes up several floors without the elevator."

"It's no big KP, we're in college now. These are supposed to be the best times of our lives."

"Hello beautiful, you looking for a man to help you move your stuff?" Kim and Ron turned towards the voice. It belonged to a striking young man. He casually leaned against the wall. He had light brown hair which was highlighted and spiked. His clothes looked brand new and were from top of the line labels. The whole look screamed arrogant. What really bothered Ron though was that the guy's eyes were wandering up and down Kim's body.

"She's got help dude." The stranger looked over at Ron, noticing him for the first time.

"Extra help never hurt anyone." He flashed a smile at Kim.

"I think we can handle, thanks for the offer though."

"If you change your mind I'll be around." With a wink he turned a walked off. Ron's eyes never left him until he was out of the building.

"What a creep." A small pink head poked out of his pocket nodding.

"Don't worry about it Ron. Let's just concentrate on the boxes." She gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Besides I'll take your help over anybody else's." Smiling they resumed walking towards their cart.

* * *

Ron collapsed as he finally made it to the correct landing, panting he slid the final box forward into the hallway. The dorm or Residents Hall as everyone seemed to be calling them now was a more modern idea to a classic concept. It was more of an apartment style, with 4 single rooms attached to a living and kitchen area. Standing back up Ron looked over as Kim finished climbing the stairs; they had moved his stuff in first since his room was a floor below.

"Wow, that was rough" He wiped his brow off with his sleeve. "The stuff is moved in but we still need to unpack…" His comment was interrupted as a girl bumped him out of the way as she moved into the room. "I was like, here first, you know."

"Rude enough." Kim spit out.

"Don't mind her, she gets focused on one thing and kind of spaces everything else out." Kim and Ron turned to see who the voice belonged to. Standing behind them carrying several bags was an average looking man. "Hi I'm Cameron Brake, everyone just calls me Cam. Welcome to Reed Hall." He had brown hair bordering on dark, with a neatly trimmed goatee that framed his face nicely. He was solidly built and while not as big as Brick, would have been able to give him a run for his money. He had on a long sleeved shirt with the sleeves pushed up to his elbows and loose fitting jeans.

"Dude, are you like the hall director or that girls big brother." Ron shot out. His statement made Kim look closer. She realized she hadn't noticed that this guy didn't look like he really fit the age for a dorm resident. "You sure don't look young enough to be a student."

"Ron, that was kind of rude." She was embarrassed by how quickly Ron had stuck his foot in his mouth. "I'm Kim Possible, and this is my boyfriend Ron Stoppable."

"As in the Kim Possible and Ron Stoppable." Their heads nodded. "Wow, what an honor, never figured I'd meet the likes of you two, you're actually living here." He stuck his hand out and shook both of their hands. "As for being rude don't worry about it, I am older then most people you find living on campus. Some of us just get a late start and still don't want to miss any of the fun." Smiling he started towards the door again. "Lets not stand here blocking the hallway all day."

Entering, Kim and Ron noticed three girls standing in the main room. One was the girl that had bumped into them, the others they hadn't seen before. "Ladies, may I introduce the final member of this insane asylum." The other girls turned towards Cam. "Ladies, Kim Possible; Kim Possible, the ladies." His comment drew the intended reaction, irritation, smiling he continued. "And this fine upstanding young man is Ron Stoppable, now now don't get to excited he is already spoken for." He continued to smile until he noticed the look from the other girls in the room, feigning confusion. "What?" A pillow caught him in the face.

"Funny Cam, forget something." He looked around, scratching his head. "How about our names." The girl walked up and smacked him on the shoulder. "Hi, I'm Kari Conn" Pointing over at the smaller of the two remaining girls. "This is Casey Nough. And last but not least this is Gwen Trouble."

Kari was dressed in a tight fitting t-shirt and jean shorts, looking like she was ready to work. Her dirty blond hair was pulled back into a ponytail; the tail did nothing to hide its very curly nature. She had an athletic look to her and looked as if she would go and prove it if not for the glasses perched on the end of her nose. Her eyes danced behind the glasses, sparkling a beautiful aquamarine.

Casey was by far the most serious looking of the bunch. Her dark brown eyes seemed to study everyone around her and not miss a thing. Her brunette hair was kept just above shoulder length and accented her face nicely. She was smaller then the other two and looked almost out of her element, especially since she was wearing a sundress.

Gwen looked like she belonged behind a TV playing a video game. She was wearing a baggy hooded sweater and cargo pants at least 1 size to large. The clothes just hung on her but she didn't seem to care. Her hair was also brunette but much lighter in color; it hung just past her shoulders. The ice blue coming from her eyes betrayed the slacker look she was trying to give; they seemed to glow with mirth at the new arrivals.

Gwen and Casey started moving towards the door. "It was nice to meet you, but we already unpacked so we're going to check out more of the campus. Catch you guys later." The two disappeared down the hall.

"Unfortunately I'm not done unpacking, if you'll excuse us." Smiling she got a snobbish tone in her voice. "Come along Cam." With a flourish she turned head held high and headed into her room.

"Looks like you've got a great group here KP."

"Yeah, should make for an interesting year. Lets get to unpacking or we are never going to get done." Kim said turning towards her room.

The room looked as if the boxes and bags had just been dumped in. Sighing Kim bent down and picked up one of the bags and began to put the clothes away. As she worked her mind kept wandering back to the previous year. It had gone by so fast she couldn't believe it. They had gone on very few missions, it seemed that Drakken and the rest had decided to take some time off. In fact the last mission they were on was almost 3 months ago. The last mission hadn't been anything special, just Drakken with some crazy take over the world scheme like usual. It was after the mission that things had gotten weird.

_

* * *

Ron and she had decided to enjoy a night on the town. They were enjoying the view from one of the taller buildings when they noticed a commotion in a warehouse below them. Deciding to check it out they had found themselves in the middle of a war. It wasn't super villain related, just common criminals, but someone had taken them apart and done it hard. Kim was shocked at how badly the thugs were beaten, most were lucky if they had only two broken bones._

_A crash grabbed their attention as they moved further into the building. Moving through a doorway they saw them, two figures standing over another thug. They wore pure black outfits, not ninja gear; more like combat fatigues. The first was slender and held themselves with grace, definitely female. She was dressed like her partner except for a ribbon tied around her arm. The other was a brute, pure and simple. Most large guys carry themselves with a swagger, letting everyone know that they're big and tough. This guy had none of that, he simple moved with a purpose. He grabbed the thug and slammed him into the wall with a sick crunching sound, definitely broken ribs. He hung there unable to even raise his head to look back at his attacker._

_Kim reacted on instinct; she rushed forward and interposed herself between the two. "What are you doing? He's done, he can't fight back." She glared at the dark stranger, what she saw shook her. The eyes glaring at her were human, but they held no humanity in them. The thug dropped to the floor next to her, which might have been a good thing but now this monster was looking at her._

_A hand reached out and gently touched the mans arm. In that moment his expression changed, his head snapped over to where his partner stood next to him. Her head gently shaking from side to side, then they both turned and ran. Kim was about to follow them when a hand landed on her shoulder. She turned seeing Ron standing there, with a determined look on his face._

"_We can either chase them and let some of these guys die or we can save the chase for another day."_

* * *

Kim shuddered despite the warmth of the day. Ron noticed and looked closer at her. "What's up Kim?" A concerned look growing on his face.

"I was just thinking about…them." She still referred to them as, well them. The media had begun calling them Ribbon and Stalker, although she doubted very much if that's what they called themselves.

"Not to worry KP, they've only been seen a few times since then. I doubt they last too much longer, they'll give it up." Ron gave her a reassuring smile.

"Actually I had Wade do some checking, these two didn't start in the Tri-City area." Pacing around the room. "They've been moving around the country for the last 2 years. I think they are here to stay, well maybe not here, but you get what I'm saying." She looked over and found Ron just smiling at her.

"Don't worry; nothing's going to happen as long as you've got the Ron Dog with you." He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into a tight embrace. "We're this areas dream team." She couldn't help but smile, he always looked at the brighter side of things.

After unpacking her room they went down to Ron's. She hoped he would actually unpack his stuff instead of just tossing it around the room. When they had finished with her stuff she had been disappointed to find that nobody was there, Gwen and Casey were still out and Kari and Cam were no longer there. Oh well she'd have plenty of time to get to know them better.

* * *

Walking into the main room, both Kim and Ron were surprised to see Cam standing there talking to another guy. This guy made Cam look small. He was the same height but built like a tank, it looked like he had to turn sideways to walk through a door. His hair was jet black and was long enough to show that it hadn't been combed. He was wearing a muscle t and shorts. Cam's back was to the door so the other guy noticed Kim and Ron first.

"Can I help you?" He said as Cam turned.

"Actually this is my room, well that one over there is." Ron said pointing in the direction of the room with his stuff in it. "We're just going to get started unpacking."

"You're in this room, man that's cool." Cam had a big grin on his face. "I'm also here and so is this big guy."

"Hey, I'm Steve Swardson." His hand shot out and took Ron's hand in his. Ron's hand completely disappeared into the folds of Steve's. Grinning Steve moved on and gently shook Kim's hand.

"Glad to meet you I'm Ron Stoppable and this is Kim Possible."

Steve stood there smiling for a second then his expression dropped. "Really? Bummer and here I thought I'd be the big man in this dorm." His smile returned immediately as he smacked Ron on the shoulder. "Oh well, looks like I'll have to share."

"Steve here is on the football and looks to have a good shot at starting at linebacker." Cam stated as Ron rubbed his shoulder. His watch beeped at him at that moment. "Oops, got to go or I'll be late for work. Don't have to much fun kids. Later." With that Cam left the room.

"I'd love to stay and chat but I've got to get to practice." He turned to leave then turned back. "Just so you know the other guy living here is Tom, he…can be some what obnoxious. Anyway take it easy."

"Well it looks like I'm going to have an interesting year as well."

"Ron our lives are already interesting, now it's just by a matter of degree." Looking around. "Lets get started maybe we can get done before dinner." The mention of food brought a small squeak of excitement from Ron's pocket. Rufus poked his head out. "Not yet Rufus, we have to finish unpacking first." Disappointed Rufus slumped back into the pocket.


	3. Chapter 2

The evening had come quickly enough, but they had managed to get everything put away. Sitting on Kim's bed they were talking about the various courses they would be taking when classes started next week. Both were excited at the prospect of actually taking course they wanted to. They were still talking when the main door opened; they heard several people come in.

"HELLO, anybody home?" Cam bellowed from the common room. "Gee, I hope they aren't off doing something else." Kim and Ron came in. "Ah there you two are, alright let's go, come on come on."

The group consisted of Gwen, Casey, Kari, Steve, and Cam. "Where exactly are we going?" Kim asked.

"Good question, out."

"I beg your pardon."

"We're going out." This was not the response Kim wanted. "Ok, since we are all going to be living with each other for the next year, we need to get to know each other. So we're going to go out and have some fun." The smile never left his face.

"I'm game. How about you KP?" He looked over at her; she just shook her head and smiled. "That's my KP, always up for some fun."

* * *

The group decided to go down to a local club called The Input. Club was actually a poor term, it was more laid back for what most people would call a club, there was no blaring music or huge crowds. Instead it was more of a coffee house but with a larger selection of food and drink. The locals still called it a club though. Grabbing a table that would fit all of them the guys left to get the drinks and food.

"So what's it like being a world wide heroine?" Casey asked looking at Kim.

"It can be a little wild at times but it isn't anything really. I just do what I can." Kim smiled. "What about you three? I'm at the disadvantage here, so I'd like to level the playing field."

Kari laughed. "I guess your right; we know lots about you, even as messed up as the media can be, but we don't know anything about each other. Well I grew up in your typical small town, nothing really special about it, couldn't get away fast enough. College was the best bet to escape so I decided to get a degree in Veterinary Science, been working on that for the last 2 years." Kim hadn't realized that Kari was older then she was. Kari noticed the look. "Yep, not a fresh from high school like the rest of you."

"I'm just here to waste some time until something more interesting comes along." Gwen commented, lounging back in her chair. "Figured college was a good way to stay out of the real world for awhile longer." The others gave her a puzzled look. "I spent too much time as a kid being pushed to do things, so now I get to call the shots and I'm going to take a break." She pasted a lopsided grin on her face.

"What about you Casey?" Kari was looking at the smaller girl.

"Me, oh, well I was top of my class in school, I was captain of the debate team, and I organized school protests against the lack of punishment to bullies. I was also active in the community, doing things like soup kitchens and the what not. Being out there I saw all of the crime that goes on so I decided the best way to help would be to get the criminals into the system and keep them there. That's why I came here to get a degree in Law; I plan on becoming a DA." She had not taken a breath the whole time she was talking. The other girls sat there for a second before busting up. "What, what did I say?"

"Not what you said but how you said it. You need to learn to breath, or you'll pass out during your court cases." Gwen was in tears.

The guys looked over at the table when they heard the laughter. "At least they're having a good time. How long does it take to get a pitcher pop and seven glasses?"

"Who knows, I think the waitress must have fallen asleep back there. Anyway you were saying." Steve brought them back to the conversation they were having.

"Well I spent the last several years working at an auto shop, you know building custom cars. I enjoy it but I think of it more as a hobby then a career. A few years ago I ran into Kari, she'd brought a car to the shop for her dad. With all the time I had to put into the car she was around a lot, we became friends and she convinced me to go to college." He swung his arms wide. "So here I am a 24 year old freshman."

"Dude, doesn't matter how old you are as long as you're doing something you want to do." Ron grabbed the tray of drinks that had finally arrived. "Better get over there before the ladies get tired of waiting." They began moving past people carefully.

As they got to the table and seeing the smiling group of women, Cam spoke up. "Guys we have just made the fundamental mistake of the ages, never leave a group of girls to talk alone. It only brings trouble." He dodged a hit from Kari as he pulled his chair out.

"You better watch yourself or you'll be the first one in trouble." Kari glared at him in mock irritation.

"So Steve, what about you?"

Steve looked up from his drink. "Pretty much the same story as any other college ball player, lots of work for lots of fun." He placed his drink on the table. "I wasn't the best, but I worked hard and tried harder; it paid off. Which was good because my family really didn't have the means to send me to college, financial problems." He looked back into his drink for a second.

"What happened?"

"My dad got hurt and was in the hospital for awhile. That sort of thing eats up money really quick." Smiling he looked back up. "But I'm here now and here to stay."

They continued to talk about this and that, jumping from one story to another and having a great time. Cam and Steve got up to go get the food which had finally arrived on the counter. As they moved towards the counter a nearby table over turned, two guys were arguing with each other. Looking at each other Cam and Steve shrugged and walked over.

"Guys please, let's keep it civil shall we. This isn't really the place to be having a fight." Cam moved up to the closer of the two. "Why don't you just take a minute to calm down and think about this."

"Think about this jerk." The guy threw his drink into Cams face. He was about to follow through with a punch; Steve didn't give him the chance.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" He grabbed the guy and slammed him to the floor. "If you're looking for a fight you found it." Steve pulled the man's arm behind him until the joint started to pop. A hand appeared on Steve's shoulder, looking up he saw Cam, still dripping from the drink.

"That's enough Steve he didn't hurt me, just got me a little wet, I'll live." Cam stepped back as Steve roughly hauled the guy to his feet. "I suggest you leave before you ruin the night for anybody else, yourself included." The guy scrambled off, deciding he had better places to be. "Well hopefully, that is as exciting as the night will get. Come on."

They finished grabbing the food and returned to the table. The night went on without further incident and the group had a great time.

* * *

Ron had spent the last two days making sure he had everything for his classes. He had just been to the bookstore and picked up all of the books, notes, folders, and papers on his list. The weight of his backpack was almost enough to drag him to the ground.

"I swear Rufus, they only make you get this much stuff to give you a workout walking from your room to class."

The little mole rat looked up. "Yep"

"Oh well, almost back to the hall; at least they got the elevator fixed." While it wasn't a terrible climb, stomping up 4 flights of stairs with a loaded backpack didn't appeal to him all that much. As he got into the room he dropped the pack on the floor. He looked around sheepishly, hoping he hadn't bothered anybody. He saw Cam slouching down in a chair in his room. "Sorry about that Cam." He didn't respond to the comment, confused Ron walked to his doorway and knocked. "Hey Cam, everything alright?"

"Huh, oh, uh yeah." He stammered. He hadn't heard anybody come in and was surprised to find Ron standing in the doorway. "Didn't hear you come in."

"Yeah, you seemed kind of focused on something else." Ron noticed the picture in his hand. It was of a cute young girl. "Oh I get it, lost love."

"What?" Cam looked at the picture in his hand. "Oh no, this is my kid sister." He quickly put the picture away.

"Cool, how old is she?"

"Uh, well she would be your age…" He coughed slightly. "Hey I really should get back to this paperwork." Sitting back up straight in his chair.

"Sure big man, no problem." Ron grabbed his pack and started dragging it towards his room. "Don't work to hard, classes haven't even started yet." Cam smiled back at him and nodded.

* * *

Later Ron was running around trying to get his stuff together. He and Kim had plans to go out, but if he didn't get his act together they were going to be late. As he grabbed his comb he knocked an electric shaver onto the floor, it landed with a heavy thud. He picked it up and finished his hair. Flying out of the bathroom he almost crashed into Kari.

"Oops sorry about that, was just making sure you hadn't killed yourself in there."

"Who me, nah, just…trying to get ready and… find my…hmmm. Hey Cam have you seen my shoes." Cam was on the couch writing something, he lifted his arm straight up then pointed directly at the floor by the TV. "Cool, thanks man." Ron ran over, grabbed his shoes, and plopped down onto the chair. "Whatcha working on, you've been writing for like an hour." Cam waved his free hand at him and continued working. Ron went back to tying his shoes.

Finishing he looked up and saw a strange expression on Cam's face; it was a cross between anger and…well he wasn't quite sure. Then he noticed Cam's hand was shaking, not from anger but almost as if he could no longer hold the pen he was writing with. The pen dropped from his grasp, his hand still shaking. Kari was there in an instant talking quietly with him. Ron was about to ask a question when everyone else came into the room.

"Ready to go Ron?" Kim asked from the back of the group.

"Where are you two off to?" Smiled Gwen as she looked at Kim.

"Just dinner and a movie, figured we'd better do it now before we don't have any time."

As the group continued to talk Kari lead Cam to his room, no one noticed the slight limp."

Kim and Ron had finally managed to get out the door. They'd had a wonderful evening at the movie and having dinner at a nice restaurant. Ron had been disappointed that it wasn't Bueno Nacho, but he thought it was good none the less. After dinner they decided to take a walk around the city before heading back to the Hall.

"I had a great evening Ron."

"I aim to please, although I understand why you picked where we ate." He smiled as she poked him in the ribs.

"There can be such a thing as too many Nacos." She laughed at the horrified look Ron was giving her. "Oh come on, you can't eat them all the time. Well I mean you could, but why."

"Sometimes I don't know why I try Rufus." He was confused at first as to why Rufus didn't respond, then he remember Rufus had stayed home. "Maybe we should stop at Bueno Nacho to pick something up for Rufus. He would probably be pretty upset if we didn't bring him dinner."

"Ok Ron, but only to pick up something for Rufus."

They had begun walking down a deserted street when a hooded figure jumped out in front of them. He wasn't alone as two more came out of a nearby alley.

"Hand it over and I won't have to hurt the pretty little thing on your arm."

"Neither is going to happen dude, so why don't you and your friends just call it night." Ron had put himself between Kim and the thugs. He knew that if it came to a fight Kim would be in no danger, but he wasn't just going to stand there and not defend her. "I won't tell you again."

"You're a pretty funny guy, maybe I'll let you live long enough so you can watch my friends deal with your girl." He moved forward pulling a knife from his pocket.

Kim was about to spring at him when a muffled cry brought her attention back to the other two. Neither was standing any longer, instead two dark figures were moving slowly away from them and towards the third. Any other time Kim would have been more then happy to run across Ribbon and Stalker, but not when she was dressed for a night on the town.

The thug's attention immediately moved from his victims to his attackers. Even though he was a thug he knew a little about fighting. He dropped back into a lower stance, holding the knife close to his body, ready to lash out with it. He waited for them to approach, Ribbon held back as Stalker moved in. He waited until the perfect distance and attacked with a quick strike. The thug's first swing was good, really good; but good wasn't enough. Stalker caught the man's hand and wrenched it around, causing him to drop the knife, as he drove his face into the wall. The thug staggered away as Stalker released him. His nose was broke, he could barely see through the tears building up in his eyes. Stalker was now on the other side of him, trapping him.

_This punk got lucky_. He thought. It _won't happen again._ He charged, faked a jab and threw a left hook, it to did not land. Stalker's right hand was wrapped around the thug's fist, he applied pressure. Bones began to creak and pop, as the thug fell to his knees. The thug broke, begging to be let go. The impact from the kick thundered down the alley, the man slide several feet before coming to a rest.

Stalker was about to continue after him when an arm grabbed him and spun him around. He was face to face with a very upset red head, her green eyes flamed as she stared at him.

"That is ENOUGH! He is beaten; there is no point in hurting him further." Kim was surprised at how angry she was. The thought of beating a downed enemy was beyond her. She was about to continue when she was roughly pulled back. At first she thought it was Ron but the sight of him with his mouth hanging open squashed that idea. Turning she found Ribbon standing before her waggling her finger back and forth. "That's it." Dropping back she entered into her normal fighting stance.

The dark fighter before her shifted slightly and entered her own stance. Kim charged sweeping low with her leg. The attack didn't land like she knew it wouldn't, dodging it placed Ribbon out of balance. Kim's other foot lashed out catching her in the chest and sending her to the ground.

Rolling with the fall Ribbon came up on her knees in time to block a quick strike to her face, only to be tossed as the strike grabbed her wrist. She was outclassed and she knew it, she didn't want to fight Ms. Possible, they were on the same side. She hoped that her partner would not enter into the fight.

Stalker began to move towards the two battling women. He didn't care that the other woman was a hero, only that she was fighting against them. He found his path blocked by the only other person standing.

Ron knew he didn't stand a chance, knew he would likely be hurt badly, and he knew none of that matted. Watching he knew she was in no danger of losing to Ribbon but both of them was a different story. He would not, could not stand by as KP was double teamed. "That's far enough big guy, this fight is between the ladies." Nervously he took up a stance. The first swing was arching, powerful, and slow. Ron ducked out of the way and landed a hit on his opponents exposed ribs. _Maybe I do stand a chance_ he thought. The backhand sent him to the ground and chased the thought from his head, groaning he was lifted off the ground by his collar.

She heard him cry out, looking over she saw him being lifted up. Ribbon was pushed from her mind, only Ron mattered now. Springing high she brought her knee down on Stalkers arm with devastating results. Muscles strained and failed, the arm dropped limply to his side losing its grip on Ron. She was immediately at his side as he gasped for air.

"Ron are you ok?" Her face was pale with dread and she looked him over. A small amount of blood came from his lip but other then that he appeared to be fine.

"I'm good KP." His words coming between gasps. "Just need to catch my breath. Where did they go?" Looking around he couldn't see any sign of Ribbon or Stalker.

"Doesn't matter at the moment, we'll get them next time." The concern on her face was still evident. "Let's get out of here."

* * *

Ribbon leaned against the rooftop chimney, her arms wrapped tightly around her body. Silently she watched him, he hadn't moved for nearly an hour, perched on the edge of the building. She knew what was wrong; she just didn't know what to do about it. They had been risking their lives taking on the criminal element for 2 years now. Sometimes they got hurt, the bad guys always got hurt, that was the way things were. Tonight things had changed, they had fought and lost. It wasn't the loss that bothered her; it was who they had fought with. They had never intended, never wanted to fight with someone who was doing the same thing they were. As bad as it was for her it was worse for him. Losing as she had, her only intent was to distract Ms. Possible, but he had lost himself again and almost severely hurt Mr. Stoppable. The thought was tearing him up inside.

Quietly she walked over to him and gently placed her hand on his. He looked at her and she saw in his eyes pain, uncertainty, and fear. No words would help; she simply stood there holding the hand of a man who was slowly losing himself.

* * *

Ron woke up later then he planned to. Stretching he felt muscles complain and bones pop. Climbing out of bed slowly he put on some clothes, and stumbled into the main room. His eyes still refused to fully open as he yawned.

Steve was in the kitchen leaning against the counter working on breakfast, he managed a muffled morning between bites of cereal. His hair was a mess and he looked like he might fall into his bowl. Realizing something he swallowed the over sized mouth full he had. "Hey, good thing you're dressed the girls will be down in a moment. Don't need you scaring them by being half naked."

"If the girls are coming don't you think we should get Cam up?"

"No, look what getting up did for us." At that moment the door opened and the girls came in. "Ugh how can they look that good this early?" Looking at the clock. "Oh yeah, it isn't early." Pushing off from the counter he winced.

"What's up Steve hurt yourself?" Casey was looking over at him.

"Oh he took a hard hit at practice yesterday." Gwen replied. The others looked at her with the, how do you know that look. "Well I mean I heard some of the other players talking about it. What; I was walking past the field when they were leaving." The others were smirking at how flustered she had become.

"She's right, wasn't watching enough of the field and took a helmet in the arm." Looking the others saw a bulge on his right arm indicating where the ice pack was. "Nothing to big should be good in a day or to. As much fun as I'm having talking about myself are we going to just sit here all day or are we going to go out and enjoy the last of our summer break."

* * *

The last of summer hadn't lasted nearly long enough, now they were in the full swing of school. Ron was coming out of his last class of the day, or night as it now was. _Who ever heard of a class finishing at 9pm_ he thought. He trudged towards the hall with more energy then he thought he had. Rounding a corner he saw Gwen up ahead of him, he was about to call out to her when she disappeared into an alley. Ron stopped at the entrance to the alley and looked in. He could see Gwen talking to someone but couldn't make them out. They both began heading out towards the other end of the alley. He almost went to catch up, but then thought better about it, no sense in intruding. Continuing on he could see the hall glowing from all of the lights, almost home.

"Hey Ron." He looked and saw Kari walking towards him. "Just get done with class?"

"Yeah, going to be a long term getting out this late. What are you up to?"

"I'm supposed to meet Cam at the library so we can study." Checking her watch. "In fact I better get going. Have a good night." With that she headed off.

Walking into the main room Ron was surprised to see Cam there. "I just ran into Kari, she said you two were going to the library."

"I'm running a bit behind." He was stuffing things into his bag. "If I don't get going and fast she is going to hurt me." Smiling he headed towards the door. "Take it easy Ron, be back later."

Ron collapsed onto the couch and flipped the TV on. He didn't realize how tired he really was until he heard the door close. Looking at the clock he had been dozing for the last 3 hours. Glancing over the couch he saw Steve digging in the fridge, he looked absolutely beat.

"Steve what happened to you?"

"Oh it has just been another long day, classes, practice, and then we had to review game footage." The expression on his face lead Ron to believe that there was more but he decided not to pursue it. "I'm going to crash, good thing it's the weekend, I can sleep in."

"Night." Ron turned off the TV and got up to go to bed himself. It had been a long week and he was really looking forward to the weekend.


	4. Chapter 3

Ron was awake but had no idea why, then he heard footsteps in the main room. Somebody had come in and the door closing had wakened him. His stomach rumbled as he got out of bed. He started to toss on some shorts then thought better of it and put on some decent clothes. _I'll go up and see if KP wants some breakfast to_ he thought. Opening his door he saw someone he hadn't expected to see standing in the main room. It was the guy from their first day, Ron wondered what the heck he was doing in.

"Uh can I help you and how did you get in here?"

"Oh, hey I'm Tom. Sorry if I woke you." He was leaning back against the kitchen counter. "Figured I'd better stop in before somebody reported me missing." If he recognized Ron he showed no sign of it.

"I was kind of wondering if and when you'd show up. I'm Ron by the way." He offered his hand but Tom wasn't paying attention. "So where've you been?"

"I've got a couple of places I crash." He raised his eyebrow slightly. "It makes things more interesting that way."

"Right, anyway hate to run but I've got places to be." Trying to sound sincere while he moved out the door. "I'll catch you later maybe." Tom was already sitting down on the couch and didn't seem to hear him. "At least he didn't try to talk my ear off." He mumbled.

* * *

The gentle clinking of pots and pans brought Kim awake. The fight last night had caught up with her as she felt stiff muscles. She laid there enjoying the fact that she didn't have to get up. The smell of bacon and eggs drifted into the room tempting her out of the soft folds of her bed. She slid out of bed and made her way to the main room. She was surprised to see Ron standing in the kitchen working intently.

"Ron how did you get in here?" Then as if to answer her question she saw Casey standing behind him. Other doors opened as Gwen and Kari came into the room. "Morning you two." Mumbles and grunts were the only response she got. Both of them looked as if they had spent the night running a marathon. "You two look awful."

"Couldn't get to sleep, just tossed and turned all night." Kari stifled a yawn.

Gwen also yawned. "Guess I over did things yesterday."

"What things?" Casey asked.

"Things."

"Well this should help wake you up. Breakfast is served." While the girls had been talking Ron had served everything up onto 5 plates. "Eat up before it gets cold." He walked over to Kim with her plate. Taking it she leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. "Morning KP."

As they started on their breakfast Ron found his thoughts being drawn back to the previous night. He had never felt so helpless, so useless during a fight. Kim had never expected him to be a fighter but that didn't change the fact that she needed somebody who could really cover her back. The thought of her being hurt as he stood by unable to help struck him to the core. He would be damned if he was going to let that happen. His thoughts continued to swirl from one concept to the next.

"Earth to Ron."

"Sorry, what was that?" Ron had been so caught up he hadn't noticed Kim trying to get his attention. "I was just thinking."

"About what?" Kim walked over and grabbed his plate. "And don't give me the whole about class routine." She raised an eyebrow at him as she took the plates into the kitchen.

"Just thinking about last night, how they seemed to disappear into the night." He wasn't completely lying. "They must know the city pretty well." The other girls looked up at the conversation.

"What are you talking about Ron?" The look Casey was giving him showed she didn't have a clue.

"We kind of had a run in with those two vigilantes Ribbon and Stalker last night." He stated flatly.

Gwen's eyes nearly bugged out of her head. "Holy, how did you run across them, were they taking out some punks, are they cool?" She stopped and seemed to compose herself. "I mean what happened?"

"They got the drop on some muggers who thought Ron and I looked like easy targets."

"I bet that was cool to watch, I mean not that you two couldn't have taken them." Casey was leaning forward.

"It was brutal, and not in a cool way, they hammered on those guys. Then things got a little heated. Kim didn't take to how they handled things and they didn't take to her telling them to stop." Ron looked down as if shrugging the whole thing off. "It could have gone better."

"Are you two ok? Sounds like it became a scrap between the four of you." Kari looked worried.

"Nothing to worry about." Checking his watch. "Oh man I've got to get running things to do and what not. Hey Kim I'll check back later." With that he headed out the door.

"You two are really ok?" Kari asked again.

"Oh yeah, just some bruises. It's no big."

* * *

He wasn't sure exactly what he was going to do; all he knew was that he had to be better prepared to help Kim. Walking into the main room he found Steve playing some sports game. He fell onto the couch next to him.

"That doesn't sound like a very happy flop." Not looking up from the game. "What's on your mind?" He jerked the controller around hoping the extra movement would help him in the game.

"Just stuff, lots and lots of stuff."

Normally Steve could have cared less about someone like Ron, but then again Ron wasn't just a normal goofy guy. Looking over at him, he saw something he hadn't seen from him before, intensity. "You better take it easy before you burn a hole in the wall with that stare." Ron glanced over at him. "Get it organized and then spit it out." He reached over and shut the system off then turned and placed his arm on the back of the couch. "Holding it in isn't going to help you." 

"Things are different now, I mean sure KP and I still go out and save the world but it isn't the same. Things seem more frantic, on edge, dangerous." He sighed. "And while she has always been able to handle herself I keep finding that I'm not helping much." The fear was evident on his face. "One of these days she will need my help and I won't be able to give it and then." His face dropped.

"You're afraid that when she needs you most, when it is all on the line, you won't be able to deliver." Ron nodded. "Welcome to the real world, everybody is afraid of failing."

"Death isn't usually at the top of the list when failure happens for everybody else."

"Sure most of us don't have to worry about super villains or mutants, but we all have to deal with coming up short." Steve had a smile play across his face. "If I screw up on the field and miss a play that wins the game for the other team I can either fixate on the mistake or I can make sure I don't do it again. The only things you can do are work hard and do the best you can."

Ron thought about this for a second. "Yeah I guess your right, but what can I do to get better for our missions."

"I can't tell you since you don't have any footage of your missions, but you should know where you are lacking."

He had never analyzed what he did during the missions since most of the time he was just a distraction and he was pretty good at that. It was when he had to fight that he lacked. His understanding and control of monkey kung fu had gotten better, but it was still pretty hit or miss. He need something else something he had more control over. The idea hit him before he fully realized he was getting one. "Hey Steve would I be able to hit the gym with you?"

The question came so far out of the blue that he took a moment to respond. "Uh well normally I work out with the team but I guess if you really wanted to I can see about getting you in."

"That would be great, I appreciate it." Ron had a far off gaze in his eyes as a smile crept onto his face. He snapped back after a moment. "Don't tell anybody though."

"Sure thing." Steve had to wonder if this was really a good idea.

* * *

The next month had gone by in a flash. Everybody had been doing there own things trying to keep up with school. This worked in Ron's favor since he could disappear to go work out with Steve. Steve had asked the couches if he could bring Ron to the gym and was surprised when they said sure. The coaches as well as the other members of the team were interested in meeting the teen hero. The other surprise for Steve was how hard Ron had begun working and how much he had improved. Ron didn't look like the type of guy who took things seriously very often.

Currently Ron was on the bench press, in the last month he had increased his lift by 40 pounds. Racking the weight he sat up and wiped his face with a towel. He had been working hard for the last hour and it showed as the sweat ran down his face. "Not bad, although I seem to have slowed down some."

"It happens, you'll be able to push past it, it'll just take some time." Steve added several extra plates. "My turn."

Ron brooded for a moment. _How can I get better if I have to slow down?_ He thought. While he had improved dramatically in his fitness it didn't really show. He was leaner now and definitely more toned, but he hadn't gained any size. _As long as I'm stronger size doesn't matter._ The clanking of the bar brought him back to the world around him.

Steve sat up. "Let's call it a day; I think we've both done enough."

"Yeah I guess your right." They moved out of the room and into a hallway. "So any big plans for tonight?"

"Maybe." This got a raised eyebrow out of Ron. "Then again maybe not." Laughing Steve continued. "I planned on hitting the library but I wouldn't call that a big plan."

"Yeah, not real exciting either. Oh well life can't always be kicks and giggles." He shrugged. "I know I've said this before but thanks for helping me with this, it means a lot."

"Hey no problem, what are friends for. Just remember it takes time." They walked into the locker room. "Well I'm going to grab a shower then head to the library."

"I'll catch you back at the room." Ron grabbed his stuff and headed back out the door.

Her keys hit the ground as she swore softly under her breath. Kim had tried to dig the keys out of her bag while holding onto the mail and a drink. She bent down to pick the keys up when a voice called out from behind her.

"Need a hand hot stuff?" Her face remained neutral. "I'm always ready to help a woman in need." Tom walked up and opened the door to the Hall.

He was the last person she had hoped to run into with the exception of maybe Drakken or Shego. She'd been surprised when Ron had told her that he was the third roommate. Over the last month she had only seen him several times and none of them had been too pleasant. Every time he had hit on her, he seemed oblivious to the fact that she was with Ron. For his part Ron hadn't gotten to upset but only because she had convinced him she would handle it.

"Evening Tom thanks for getting the door."

"Again not a problem." His smile was anything but sincere. "So doing anything later?"

"As a matter of fact I'm meeting up with Ron." Her tone was less then pleasant.

"Well if you get bored let me know we'll go do something fun."

"Ok listen up." She spun on him. "I'm not going to go out with you I'm with Ron, so stop asking."

"Just giving you options babe." Shrugging his shoulders.

"I don't need to be given options." Her eyes flared. "This is no longer a hint, stop bothering me." She stomped off not giving him a chance to respond. She was still fuming when she made it to her room.

"Problems Kim?" Casey was sitting on the couch reading one of her textbooks.

"Just that jerk Tom. He makes me so mad, it's like he doesn't understand the word no." She landed in one of the chairs. "He keeps hitting on me, I finally told him off but I doubt it helps."

"I guess the good thing is he isn't around much."

"True but I'd rather not deal with him at all."

"Come on let's go get something to eat." She closed her book. "I'll even buy."

"Now that's something I will say yes to." The two laughed as they headed out of the room.

* * *

The night looked like it would go pretty good. Ron had run across Kim as she was getting something to eat so they had decided to stay in and watch a movie. The girls had found other things to do so they'd have Kim's place to themselves.

"So, how has everything been KP?" He was sitting back down after putting the movie into the machine.

"Could be better, could be worse." He looked at her with slight concern on his face. "Well the school work takes forever and I'm running around all day. But the really super big is…"

"What is it, tell me." Ron was growing more concerned every second.

"I'm not getting to see you as much." She leaned against him and got comfortable.

"Haha KP, just give a guy a heart attack. I thought something was seriously wrong."

"You don't think not getting to see each other is serious."

"Not what I meant and you know it." He looked down at her, her eyes were sparkling back up at him. "Guess we just have to make good the time we do have together." Wrapping his arms around her they settled in for the movie.

* * *

Ron had said his goodnight andwearily went back to his room. It had been an extremely long day but the evening had made up for it. He sagged onto his bed as he pulled off his shoes. The sound of a door opening a closing quietly caught his attention. It was from Cam's room but it didn't sound like Cam. Getting up he opened his door and came face to face with Kari.

"Oh I didn't wake you did I."

"No just got in myself. What's up?" Ron knew that Kari and Cam were close friends but he didn't think they were seeing each other.

"Nothing." She continued to walk past.

"Hold up, I know it isn't any of my business but I'm pretty sure you two aren't dating and the only other reason to be with someone this late into the night is that something is up. So what's going on?" He managed to keep his voice down even through the irritation.

"Ok." She sighed. They moved into the main room. "You know Cam to be an easy going guy, always ready with a joke or a smile." Ron nodded. "That's the way he used to be all the time, now though it is more of a face he puts on." She looked down sadly.

"Why?"

"It happened before we met. He was very close to his family, especially his sister." The image of a picture flashed in Ron's mind. "He was the protector, always watching out for her. He made sure nothing bad ever happened." Tears began to form in her eyes. "There was an accident, only Cam made it and barely at that. He was hurt badly." The tears were falling now. "In the blink of an eye his whole family was gone."

"I had no idea."

"Nobody does, although he does show it at times. He never fully got over the injuries, but he hides it well. Sometimes though he pushes to hard and it catches up with him." Ron remembered seeing Cam's hand shaking. "On the bad nights, like tonight, I stay with him until he falls asleep."

"I'm sorry to have pushed this out of you." Ron put his hand on her shoulder. "You're a good friend."

"So are you." She got up and left, leaving Ron to think in the dark.


	5. Chapter 4

A/N The story is coming along quite nicely and really picks up in this chapter. The first chapters really threw a lot at you the reader. The proceeding chapters will slow that down a ton.

I'd like to thank MatthewC for his review, nothing helps a story get better then an objective review. I'd also like to thank campy and lab1152 for their interest in the story, I hope you are enjoying it.

As always R&R.

* * *

She stared at the clock which met her gaze with its burning red numbers, 6:00am. Not being able to go back to sleep she decided to get up and start her daily workout a little early. _At least it won't be crowded _she thought. Throwing on some clothes she headed for the stairs, once outside she began to stretch. When she finished she started jogging towards the rec center. The jog served as a good warm up since the center was on the other side of campus. 

She was surprised at how many people were already there. It wasn't a large number but more then she had expected. Her workout consisted mostly of going through the many forms of martial arts she knew. After finding an empty room she decided to start with Kung Fu. As she progressed into the workout she moved on to several different forms each new form flowing in perfectly with the last. When she finished she was sweating and breathing hard.

"Nice work." She turned to see Steve standing in the doorway. "I don't recognize any of it but nice all the same."

"Thanks, what are you doing here? Don't you guys have your own gym?"

"We do but the workouts are usually in the afternoons so I came here. Although without a partner it makes getting a good workout tough, should've gotten Ron up." Kim raised an eyebrow at him.

"Why would you get Ron to come with you?"

"Oh uh, I didn't mean Ron I meant Ray he's a guy from the team, likes to workout in the mornings." He could tell she wasn't buying it. "Well Ron's always offering to help with everything else I figured he'd help with this."

"Uh huh, not buying it. Start talking." She placed her hands on her hips.

"Hey look it was just a slip of the tongue forget about it." He was bigger then her by a lot and it didn't make him feel any safer.

"Last chance before I start using some of those unrecognizable moves on you."

"He asked me not to tell anybody but since you asked so nicely." He ran a hand over his face. "About a month ago he was feeling pretty down, I'd guess it was about the run in you two had. Anyway he didn't like the idea of leaving you to fight two on one. So we started working out together."

"He's never been worried before; I mean we've faced hordes of goons with much worse odds then two on one."

"True but this time it was different. He realized that you guys are up against two pretty strong opponents. I think it scared him, he's no longer sure he could help even as a distraction."

"That's crazy, he doesn't need to any of that."

"Why not, you do." The statement hit her like a brick. "You workout everyday not only to make sure you don't lose anything but also to get better. Why shouldn't he do the same?"

"It's not like that. It's just…" She stopped mid rant realizing Steve was right. "Ok maybe you're right. I guess I better go talk to him."

"Good, just don't tell him you found out from me. I don't need to try and explain extra bruises to the coach."

* * *

"Ron wake up." 

The sunlight was coming through the shades proved it wasn't as early as it felt. Looking up he found himself staring into a pair of emerald eyes. He smiled sleepily. "Is this a dream or did I end up in heaven." A pair of hands grabbed the bed and tossed him onto the floor. "OW ok, I'm up, geez KP." He took the hand that was offered to him. "Why the hostile wake up?"

"How long were you going to do it before you told me?"

"Tell you about what?" Ron wasn't really sure what she was talking about.

"Don't play with me Ron Stoppable. You've been working out with Steve."

He considered all types of half truths to tell, but the look in her face told him to not even bother. Sighing he got up and sat on the bed. "I wasn't going to tell you, at least not for a while. She sat down next to him.

"You and I are together on top of that we've been friends forever. Why didn't you tell me?"

"I…I don't know. I thought maybe you'd talk me out of it, or that you'd say you can handle anything by yourself."

"But why did you feel you need to start working out?"

"You've always been able to take on the bad guys. Now though it isn't a bunch of hapless thugs who are only going to tie us up. Now it's a pair of very dangerous individuals. I guess I was just scared, scared of losing you." She wrapped her arms around him tightly.

"It's ok to be scared, but hiding something isn't. We're a team and team members talk to each other." She released him. "Just so you know, I never thought that you'd ever let me down and that still holds. If you feel like you need to do it then continue to work with Steve." Standing up she pulled him to his feet. "What ever you do I'll be right behind you."

* * *

Night had come quickly as Ribbon stepped onto the ledge, the height was dizzying. A breeze picked up and swirled around her, blowing several strands of untucked hair across her eyes. She put them back in place and rolled her mask down. It would be another long night, not counting the fact it was getting into late fall. She took a deep breath of the cold crisp air and stepped into space. Gravity pulled at her as she rotated in a tight flip before landing on the first platform of the fire escape. The landing wasn't clean and she stumbled towards the rails edge. A strong hand grasped her, stopping the fall. 

"You should be more careful, stunts like that will get you hurt." The voice was cold.

"Have to try new things to be ready for anything."

"I suppose." Stalker turned and moved to the opposite side of the platform.

She looked through the dark at his barely visible form. He was completely still as he scanned the streets below. Most nights they turned up nothing more then a mugging or petty crime, some nights not even that. Every crime they stopped was meaningful and yet it wasn't enough. He was searching for something more; something she wasn't sure he'd ever find.

"Let's go." He moved quickly down the escape, if he made any noise it was lost to the wind. Hitting the ground he quickly moved across the street and into the shadows of a broken streetlamp. Voices were coming out of the nearby alley.

"Man I wish you'd hurry up, I don't like standing out here in the open."

"Give me a bleedin moment this lock is being stubborn."

"Keep it down both of you. The less said the better until we are inside."

"Get your panties out of the twist there in I'm almost done." The sound of smacking flesh directed his attention behind him. Turning he found himself on the edge of a battle, his partners in a losing fight with two dark figures. The blood in his veins turned to ice. "Stalker and Ribbon." The words escaped his lips without thought. He backed up to the wall and slid along its length until he found a pile of boxes.

He was going to die, he knew it. They would find him and… The sensation of cold steel in his hand brought him back to his senses. A gun, his gun, the one he always had on him. He pulled it out of his pocket and stared at it, his confidence growing. Slowly he stepped from behind the pile he had been hiding in. The fight was over as the one called Stalker dropped his opponent in a heap. He was only a matter of feet away, he couldn't miss.

Some how Stalker had felt his presence and turned to face him. The smile on his face was evident, as was the gun he was holding. Without a pause he charged the man, and the world turned bright white as the gun roared to life.

* * *

She sat curled up against a dark rooftop corner. Occasional sobs escaped as her head rested on her knees. The tears had continued to come and go as the scene replayed itself in her mind.

_He charged as the man fired, the sound was so loud. They collided with each other, hard. The impact drove the other man back into the wall, his skull cracking like thunder, and then he slowly fell to the ground. Stalker was on his knees panting. _

She tore her thoughts away from the memory as the tears began again. Through blurry eyes she could see him standing a few feet away leaning against the roofs edge. By some miracle the man had missed, completely missed. It didn't change how scared she'd been and how scared she still was. Losing him would have destroyed her; he was more then just a friend. The thought shook her, when had he become more then a friend. This thought held her attention that she failed to notice he had walked up to her.

"How you doing?" His voice was filled with concern as he kneeled. She wiped her eyes on her sleeve.

"I'm ok."

"I think it's time we got home then. After a night like tonight we can use all the sleep we can get." He smiled and helped her to her feet.

She had no words for him as he placed his arm around her shoulders. The warmth and safety the gesture held chased away the rest of the tears.

* * *

Light, horrible light forced its way under her eyelids. She laid there for a moment before giving in and throwing back the covers. With a grumble she made her way out of her room and into the kitchen. The room was empty and from the looks of it nobody else was even up yet. Rummaging in the fridge she found several items that looked liked they my have been food at some point. Closing the door with disgust she decided going out might not be such a bad idea. A familiar beep caught her attention. 

"What's the sitch Wade?" Pulling the kimmunicator out.

"Looks like your two friends were busy last night." He tapped a few keys and a new image came up. "These are some pictures from the scene, not very pretty." The pictures showed 3 individuals all lying in heaps. "The first two are in good shape, well for the most part. The third isn't doing so well."

"Why?"

"Major head trauma, in a coma at the moment, the scary thing is it was done by a single blow." The picture shifted to a shot of the alley wall. "You can see where the brick has been cracked and from what I've read the back of his head doesn't look much better." The comment sent a shiver down her spine.

"I was afraid it was going to get to this. Have you got a location for us to check out yet?" The look she got was one of wounded pride. "Ok silly question, where do we go tonight?"

"Over in the lower district. The area is being redeveloped from industrial to commercial lots of activity there."

"If anything comes up let me know."

"Sure thing. Catch you later." The kimmunicator went blank.

* * *

The rest of the day had passed quickly as Kim planned out the search for the night. It mainly consisted of sticking to the roof tops and staying out of the way. So far they hadn't found anything that indicated Ribbon and Stalker were in the area.

"Looks like tonight is going to be a bust." Kim glumly looked at her watch. "I guess we can't expect to get a hit every time."

"To true KP, can't say I'm all that upset though."

"Ron, we need to catch them and soon before it goes any farther then it already has."

"You're right, it's just that…" He stared out at an empty roof. There wasn't anything there, no movement of any kind and yet. "They're here."

"Where I don't see anything?" She was also scanning the rooftop.

"I don't either, I just feel it."

"What do you mean, you just feel it." A shadow moved as she was about to continue. "There by the skylight." All that could be seen were shadows in shadows. Moments latter they dropped into the building. "Let's move."

Kim pulled out her grapple gun and fired it, catching it solidly on another building. Grabbing hold of Ron they swung across to the roof they had seen Ribbon and Stalker on. All seemed quiet as they approached the spot the two had disappeared into. The sound of splintering wood told them the fight had already started.

"No point in being sneaky now." Kim stated as she dropped down through the open window. She landed gracefully in a low crouch and quickly scanned the room, empty. A sudden thud caused her to spin around, Ron was just picking himself off the floor.

"Nice landing, you ok?"

"Yeah." He replied sheepishly.

The sounds of the fight drew them deeper into the building. All around them was destruction, over turned tables, broken chairs, and smashed crates. Then they started finding people, they didn't look like your typical criminals. Most were dressed in suits, others in identical coveralls, they were all unconscious.

"I've got a bad feeling about this KP. These guys look pretty organized."

"I know what you mean." Moving quickly through the building it was the same everywhere. As they were about to go into another room a burst of gunfire erupted through the wall spraying them both with fragments of sheetrock. Kim hit the floor fast and covered up as Ron landed on top of her.

"Kim are you ok?" The worry was evident in his voice.

"I'm fine as long as you get off of me." When he didn't get off the panic began to rise in her. "Ron!"

"I'm good, just stay down a second." A second burst of fire came through the wall and stopped as suddenly as it had started. Looking up they saw the man come through the door, but not under his own power. He landed in a heap, blood oozing from a nasty looking cut on his face. Behind him stood one of the dark figures they were looking for, Kim was up in a flash.

"No more Stalker, you can't keep doing this." She dropped back into a loose yet defensive stance. "Either give up or I'll have to take you down." The edge in her voice betrayed the cool demeanor she was showing. All she could see were his eyes and they were dark, blank.

She was so focused on the man in front of her she missed the shadow dropping down on top of her, Ron however didn't. He leapt into a high arc over Kim's head and collided with the figure, grabbing hold. As they fell he rotated putting the figure between him and the floor. The floor groaned as he drove the figure into it. The move rewarded him with a whoosh as the air was driven from the would be attacker. He flipped up and away landing in a very monkey pose. Looking he confirmed it was Ribbon he had just taken down. The woman lay curled up gasping for air.

Kim had only been distracted a moment by the attack before returning her attention to her opponent. She was surprised to find he was still in the same spot she had left him, but something was different. His eyes were no longer blank instead there was a cold intensity behind them. _This could be bad_ she thought.

He came at her slowly watching for any signs of an attack. When he got within several feet he stopped, he wasn't in a stance of any kind, he just stood there. Bringing his hands up he at last moved into a standard fighters stance with his left leg in front, but still he made no move to attack. The two continued to face each other the only sound was that of Ribbon slowly regaining her breath. Time slowed down to a crawl. The attack was faster then she would have given him credit for as his left hand shot out in a quick jab. She dodged left and stepped up into him, planting a solid strike to his gut. Jumping back he made no indication the hit had affected him.

They circled each other quickly waiting for an opening. Kim decided to make her own opening and took a half step towards him with her right foot, it had the desired effect. Stalker pulled back to put himself in a position to block the side kick he was expecting, it never came. Her left foot shot out as she spun on her right, sweeping his legs out from under him. He landed hard but rolled with the fall and had his feet under him before she could push the attack. Instead of standing he lunged at her, the move caught Kim off guard. He quickly scooped her up and drove her into the wall, the sheetrock crumbled around her. Stepping back he swing a powerful hook, she managed to block it but the force of the blow sent her to the ground.

"KP." Ron started forward but suddenly found his arm wrenched behind him. Ribbon had managed to recover from the blow and wasn't going to let him double up on her partner. The hold was executed perfectly the only problem was she lacked the strength to maintain it. Ron leaned to his left then quickly back to his right, the movement caused Ribbon to shift left pulling his arm into a more open position. He used strength to pull his arm around in front of him while grabbing hold of her. They stood face to face, he flashed a goofy grin at her only to have it answered with a knee to the stomach.

Kim slid to a stop as the man approached her, he didn't wait to let her get back on her feet. Quickly she rolled out of the way of a kick. The kick would have broken ribs had it connected. She was back on her feet in a flash. Stalker was a stronger opponent then most she had faced, but he was lacking in the skills department. She grinned as he moved towards her, he was a power fighter, a brawler. Using her speed and agility to her advantage she began taking the fight to him. Not every attack landed but enough of them were and it was beginning to show. His eyes still held the intensity they had earlier but now there was something else, fear.

* * *

The fight had begun to go badly, he hadn't been surprised by this. It hadn't surprised him but he still didn't like it. He had been surprised to see Ribbon having trouble with Mr. Stoppable. They had to find a way to get out of there and lose the two teen heroes. His thoughts were torn from him as a snap kick connected with his head followed by a side kick. The first kick stood him up the second sent him through a glass dividing wall. He landed on his back as the glass from the wall dug into him. Ms. Possible was coming towards him and he didn't have much left. He used what little energy he had and kipped up onto his feet, the move gave the illusion that he was still in good shape. Unfortunately the floor was in as bad a shape as he was, it groaned once and collapsed underneath him. 

She was about to finish the fight when he flipped up onto his feet. _Was this a joke_ she thought. The fight had taken it out of her and she hoped to end it soon, now it looked like it was just starting. Suddenly he was just gone as the floor broke out beneath him. Rushing towards the hole she looked down only to be greeted by a bellowing of dust.

"LOOK OUT KP." Turning she managed to get her hands in front of her face as a foot came done on them. Ribbon pushed off the block and jumped into the hole. Ron came running up his right eye was puffy and a small trickle of blood came from his nose. "You ok."

"Yeah, come on." Jumping down the hole wasn't the smartest thing she'd ever down especially since she couldn't see the bottom. She landed rougher then she would have liked but it got her down. A quick scan didn't reveal anybody as Ron landed beside her. "Outside." They quickly found an exit and ended up on the main street. Still running Kim headed towards the alley hoping to catch them. Rounding the corner the alley was empty. "Dammit." She breathed. They searched the area but found no trace of either of them, they had simply vanished.

"How in the heck did they do that, they don't fight like ninjas."

"It's ok KP. They didn't win they only got away. Next time we'll get them for sure." He gave her a reassuring grin. Her mood was still sour but she smiled despite of it, he could always do that.

* * *

It hurt, it hurt a lot. The soft tink told him another piece of glass had been pulled out. He hadn't felt it when he had gone through the glass but then adrenaline did some amazing things. Another stabbing pain hit him. 

"Digging deep enough?" He growled, his mood was less then pleasant.

"I'm doing what I can, this isn't what I would call a proper operating theater." They were in an empty warehouse surrounded by cobwebs and debris. "This last piece is really in there." She made another push into the wound. He groaned slightly but tried not to move. The clamp bit into something hard, tightening her grip she pulled.

"AHH God that hurts. You didn't grab bone did you?" She waved the piece of glass in front of his face, it was still red with blood. "Guess not. Anybody ever tell you that you have a wonderful bed side manner." His mood lightened. He was about to pull his shirt on when she stopped him. "What?"

"Are we forgetting something?" He looked at her not quite sure what she meant. "Bandages you dimwit now lay back down." She gently pushed him back onto his stomach. Placing the bandages she taped them down with little trouble. "There you go almost as good as new, a little worn on the body but still in great shape." He slipped his shirt back on. Her hands ran down his back softly.

"What are you doing?" He was glad she couldn't see his face at the moment.

"Just making sure you didn't pull anything loose."

"Oh right, thanks." He could feel her hands still resting on his shoulders. "I, uh, mean we should probably get going. The sun will be up soon." Her hands lifted off of him.

"Yeah, we don't want to be seen in the area, might be kind of hard to explain." They picked up their gear and made their way to the door. He held it open for her as she walked through he placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Thank you." He held a moment longer then released her and moved out onto the street.


	6. Chapter 5

A/N Ok I reworked the end of this chapter. I'd left something out that I intened to add later but it just worked better now. Again thanks to WesUAH for his review and all of you who have taken the time to read this story.

* * *

Morning came quicker then he had hoped. His body ached all over and more sleep was all he wanted, that or a hot shower. Looking over he found a reason to smile, lying curled up next to him was a special red headed girl. They had gotten in late and had been completely exhausted after there fight with the two vigilantes. Collapsing on the first thing they found, which thankfully was the couch, they had fallen asleep immediately.

Carefully he disengaged and after pulling the blanket back up to cover her he moved towards his room. After closing the door he stripped off his mission clothes and pulled on a pair of shorts. Making his way to the bathroom he turned the water on and waited for it to get hot. As he waited he looked at his reflection in the mirror, another black eye stared back at him. Sighing he walked back over to the shower and climbed in; the water was hot and went to work on his muscles. He stayed in just long enough to feel like a well done lobster. Drying off he wrapped the towel around him and went through his after shower routine. Still wrapped in a towel he grabbed his shorts and headed back into his room to grab a clean set of clothes. He wasn't paying much attention as he shut the door and dropped the towel and shorts to the floor. Opening the top drawer of his dresser he heard a noise behind him. Slowly he turned his head and caught a glimpse of red disappearing under the covers of his bed.

"KIM what are you doing in here?" His face was several shades of red in a matter of seconds. Quickly he grabbed the pair of shorts he'd had on earlier.

"Sorry Ron the couch is comfortable and all but it doesn't match up with a bed." The reply was muffled. "You decent yet or do I have to keep under the covers." The comments came out between giggles.

"Yeah yeah, real funny. You can come out now." As she came out he threw his wet towel at her. "Next time give a guy some warning." His face was still very red.

"I'll make sure to remember and do that." Her voice dropped to an almost mumble. "Maybe." Ron turned to glare at her but found the smile on her face to infectious. Sitting on the bed he leaned across her.

"So, do you want me to cook some breakfast or do you want to go back to sleep?" She stuck both arms over her head and stretched the covers pulled back slightly exposing her shoulders. Ron realized that she was no longer wearing her shirt, the blush returned to his face. "Uh Kim did you, um, lose something on the way in here." A seductive smile crept onto her face. She reached out and teasingly ran a finger along his ear.

"I didn't lose anything, I just don't have it with me any longer." She sat up wrapping the sheet around her. "I wasn't going to climb into a bed with my dirty mission clothes on. As for your first question I think breakfast sounds really good." Leaning over she gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Unless you really want to get more sleep." He smiled at her warmly.

"As nice as that would be I'm already up, besides…" He paused to wipe a smudge from her cheek. "You could stand a shower yourself." He jumped up quickly to dodge the pillow that came at him. "Got to be faster then that KP." He stood grinning at her, the second pillow didn't miss. "Now that we've established that you are up there is a fresh towel in the bottom drawer. I'll have breakfast done shortly so don't take to long in there." Grabbing a shirt off the back of the chair he headed into the kitchen closing the door behind him.

Getting up Kim went to the dresser and grabbed the towel out of the drawer. Next she went to the closet, she always kept a few things in there. As she dug around she came across a shirt and her eyes lit up, grabbing it she headed quickly to the bathroom. The water felt great but she kept her time short remembering that Ron had said breakfast wouldn't take long. She dried off and put on the shirt she had gotten out of Ron's closet. Smiling she left the bathroom.

Ron heard the door open and looked at the clock. Smiling _at least she didn't take to long_ he thought. He was just finishing up with the Belgium waffles, pulling the last one off the iron. Looking up he saw Kim coming into the room. At first he didn't notice but something he stuck in his mind, then he realized what it was. She was wearing one of his jerseys and then a second realization hit him, she didn't look like she had anything else on. Although the jersey hung to her knees he couldn't stop himself from staring at her.

"I believe that is one of mine." She looked down at herself, then back up at him.

"Yep, but I think it looks better on me." She did a small turn. "So is breakfast ready smells like it is."

"Oh yeah it is, hope your hungry for waffles." He grabbed the two plates and set them on the table, he then pulled out the chair for Kim. She smiled and took her seat. As Ron was about to sit they heard something from the hall.

"What was that, sounded like shouting."

"I'll take a look." He moved towards the door but didn't go very far before it became apparent that it was an argument they were hearing. "A little early for that kind of fight, especially in the hall." The shouting continued there were only two voices, one male the other female.

"We really shouldn't be listening to this."

"And how can we not, they're being so loud I don't think the stereo would drowned them out." Scratching the back of his neck he shrugged. Turning to head back to his chair he jumped as the hall door was flung open.

"I don't want to talk about it so this discussion is over." The heat rolled from Steve's voice.

"Don't give me that "only my opinion matters" crap. You're going to get yourself killed." Gwen was hot on his heals as he headed for his room. He quickly spun and jammed his face into hers.

"When it concerns me and only me then only my opinion MATTERS." Neither of the two noticed the four eyes watching them.

"FINE, go ahead and behave like a brain dead jock."

"Better then a washed out has been acting like a slacker." The words slammed into to her like a truck. She visibly shrank at the comment tears moistening her eyes. Steve held his anger for a moment longer until he realized what he'd just said. His face fell as he tried in vain to find a way to take back his comment. "I…didn't…I mean I." Covering her mouth Gwen bolted from the room tears streaming down her face.

Both Kim and Ron stood there in shocked silence. There wasn't anything to say, not at the moment. All of the color was lost from Steve as he turned and staggered towards his room gently shutting the door.

"What in the heck is going on out here?" Cam asked rubbing his face. "Sounds like the start of world war 3." Looking up he stared at Kim and Ron. "You two aren't having a fight are you?"

"Not us dude. It was Steve and Gwen, why they were so mad at each other I haven't a clue."

"Where did they go?" Cam was looking around the room.

"Steve went to his room and Gwen ran out of here."

"We should go talk to them find out what is going on." Kim started back towards Ron's room. She only made it a few steps before Ron grabbed her shoulder.

"Hold up KP, I don't think charging after them is such a good idea."

"He's right, now is not the best time." Kim looked between the two of them with shock on her face. "We need to give them a chance to collect there own thoughts before we try to dig them out. Pushing the issue right now will only make them bury it deeper." Kim stood there for a moment letting what Cam had said sink in.

"Ok we'll wait, for now." Her eyes flashed for a moment. "But we will talk to them tonight."

"That really isn't…" Ron was behind Kim who was staring at Cam viciously shaking his head. "Going to be a problem I'll be here." He pasted a smile on his face and decided to change the subject. "So what are you two going to be doing today? It looks like you must have had fun last night." His smile turned into a smirk as he raised an eyebrow. Both Kim and Ron responded to the comment with a confused look.

"We were out last night but I wouldn't call it having fun." She was about to continue when fabric rubbed against her leg, looking down she was struck with the fact that she was wearing one of Ron's shirts. "Uh this isn't really what it looks like." Her face matched her hair as she attempted to move past Cam. "I think I'll change into something more group appropriate." She ran into the room and shut the door.

"I'm sorry but that was funny." Cam managed before busting up. He caught his breath a moment later. "I hope I didn't ruin anything romantic. You know the great breakfast after the great night." His eyebrows wagged up and down on his face.

"Not like that Cam. We got in late last night and she crashed here." Red was evident on his face but his tone was serious. "We decided pretty early on that we wouldn't take it to that point for a while."

"Hey you don't need to explain anything to me I was just playing. Whether you are or not is not mine or anybody else's business." Rubbing his chin he thought for a moment. "You two have a great thing and I'm glad to see you aren't rushing into anything." The door reopened and Kim stepped back into the room. "Good to see you in more group friendly attire, not saying that the other outfit wasn't good." The look he received should have killed him.

"Keep talking and we'll have to see if you can stay in such a good mood with a broken jaw." Ice was warmer then the comment but the twinkle in her eyes told that she wasn't taking the jest to heart.

"I guess we should eat before it gets any colder."

"OH what are we having?" Two pairs of eyes burned holes into the older man.

* * *

The day dragged on as Kim had tried to come up with a way to talk to Gwen without causing her to shut down. Everything she came up with involved her marching up to Gwen and basically forcing her to talk. _This is going to be harder then I thought_. She was so deep in thought she didn't hear the person in the room with her until they sat down next to her. Looking over quickly it was Kari who had sat down.

"You look like you could use some help."

"For the girl who can do anything I sure can't come up with a tactful way to approach this." Kim rubbed her forehead. "I take it Cam told you what's up." Kari nodded. "I don't even know where to begin. I mean why the heck were they so mad at each other and why did Gwen take his comment so badly. It wasn't nice by any means but still." Kari just sat there with a smile on her face. "What?"

"Think about it for a second, you'll get it." Kim sat there for a moment but still didn't know where Kari was going. "Not just today but all year."

Kim thought back over the many weeks of school. This wasn't the first oddity that had occurred between the two. Gwen always seemed to take a special interest in Steve, always seemed to know what he had been up to. Steve seemed protective of Gwen as well as supportive of any choice she made. She thought for a moment longer before speaking.

"They seem very close almost as if they were…" Her eyes pushed into the bulging stage as she looked to Kari.

"I see you figured it out, I knew you would."

"They can't be dating, I mean why wouldn't they tell anybody, this doesn't make any sense."

"Since when did relationships make any sense." Kari raised an eyebrow with a smirk on her lips.

"How did you know? Did they tell you?"

"Not at all, I just saw everything that was going on and put 2 and 2 together. Wasn't really all that hard."

"If it wasn't so hard why didn't I see it?" Kim asked sternly. She didn't like missing something that should have been obvious.

"That is another thing about relationships, they require a lot of attention. You were busy with your own and not looking at what everybody else was doing."

"Well at least now I know what the problem is, the real challenge now is what do I do about it?"

"You want my advice?"

"At this point I think you're the only one who won't make things worse."

"Just talk to her. Don't push her and I mean that." Kim shot her an innocent look. "Yeah you know what I'm talking about. Be there to listen."

"How do you know so much?"

"I'm just good." Kari replied. "I've got to run, just remember what I told you." With that she got up and headed for the door. "One more thing, sometimes things are not as clear as you've been lead to believe and sometimes they aren't as bad."

"I hope Ron will know what he is doing." She said to herself.

* * *

She had some how managed to find a spot where she could be alone and not likely to be found. The tears had stopped long ago but the hurt still lingered. Deep down she knew he hadn't meant what he said but she just couldn't shake it.

"Nice place you have here mind if I sit down?"

"How did you find me?"

"The girl who can do anything, remember." Kim sat across from her. "Besides not that many places to go in this building." She waited for an opening to continue talking but one wasn't forth coming, so she waited. After several minutes Gwen sighed and looked up at her.

"Why did he have to say that? I know he was mad and everything but that was so cold." Her eyes were beginning to moisten.

"I don't know, in fact I don't really know what's going on. Want to tell me about it?" She cringed at the last comment hoping that she hadn't pushed too much.

"Well I guess you've probably figured by now that we aren't just friends." Kim nodded even though she hadn't figured it herself. "He's such a great guy but sometimes he just doesn't think before he leaps, always trying to live life to its fullest. I think it has something to do with his dad."

"Why do you say that?"

"Long story, better told by Steve." Her eyes grew dark for a moment.

"Ok. So why did he call you a washed up has been?" The look she got was one of regret. "Uh if you don't mind me asking."

"No it's ok. I was a gymnast growing up, I was good, really good. My parents pushed me to hard though and I just got burned out. So one day in high school I decided I'd only do what I wanted to do and if I wanted to do nothing then so be it." She gave a weak smile. "The 'rents didn't take it so well. The only person that really understood was Steve and he helped me through it."

"How did he help you through it didn't you just say this happened back in high school." Gwen nodded. "You mean…"

* * *

"Yep known each other since middle school." Steve was sitting on the top floor of the parking garage, his legs hanging over the edge. "Good friends to. After awhile we became closer."

"Why the secret? If you two have been together this long why hide it?"

"Mostly to keep her parents from finding out. They think I was the one who convinced her to give up gymnastics." He picked up a pebble and absentmindedly tossed it off the edge. "Out here though I guess we really didn't have to but it was kind of a routine for us."

"Now I know what the meaning of the comment is, which by the way was not the smoothest thing to say, but what were you to arguing about?"

"Remember when I told you that my dad got hurt?"

"Yeah." Ron's eyes narrowed.

"Well, it wasn't an accident, I mean it was but it shouldn't have happened. He stopped at a gas station one night to grab something. There was this kid who thought robbing the place was a good idea. When he saw my dad walking towards the door he panicked and the gun went off. The bullet lodged near my dad's spine." He stopped for a moment and took a breath. "After everything settled down I realized that in life you have to do what you want."

"That still didn't answer my question."

"Well I was doing something she didn't think I should be doing and she tried to tell me to stop." He gave a lopsided grin. "Woman, always looking out for us regardless if we want them to or not."

"You said it. Mind if I ask what you were doing?"

"I don't mind at all, I'm just not going to tell you."

"Uh." Ron wasn't prepared for that response in the least. "Why not?"

"Don't worry about it, isn't really that big of a thing." Ron was getting the feeling that it was more then no big thing. "Anyway thanks for the talk man, I guess I should go talk to Gwen now."

"I'd hold up on that until you're sure Kim isn't still with her." Steve paled at the thought. "Yeah, scary thought. Take it easy dude." Ron watched as Steve walked away. For a moment he thought he saw what looked to be bandages sticking out from his collar.

* * *

"So he's been going out and doing something that is both dangerous and could get him into trouble." Gwen nodded. "And you don't want to say what it is because of that reason." She nodded again. "And you were fighting because he did get hurt and you wanted him to stop." Another nod. Kim took a deep breath before continuing. "Ok as much as I want to I'm not going to push this but you should think about telling someone if you can't get him to stop."

"I will, I'm just worried how he'll react if I do. I guess I should be lucky that he lets me go with him."

"That's something I suppose. It's starting to get late you want to get something to eat?"

"No I still need some time to think. You go on and thanks for talking to me." Gwen waved as she walked away she still looked tired but not as upset.


	7. Chapter 6

A/N Ok if you ever see or hear a joke about people who go to grad school being stupid. Laugh. No seriously. Ok this chapter has taken me forever to get out and I want to apologies for that. The others will hopefully not take this many months to get up. Enjoy.

* * *

They had been out every night the whole week and had come up with nothing. Some of the nights it was completely quiet with no sign of them, on others they would show up after Stalker and Ribbon had left. Kim pounded her gloved fist into her palm, tonight had been another no show.

"I'm getting tired of this, we either don't find them or we show up late." She kicked at some loose pebbles.

"Amp down KP this isn't like our normal missions. We have a whole city to look for them in, even narrowed down to this area it is a lot of ground to cover." He flashed her one of his goofy grins we she looked over at him, her eyes softened as a smile formed on her own lips. "That's my girl." He wrapped an arm over her shoulders and pulled her close. "Let's say we blow this pop stand, we've spent enough time here for tonight."

"Yeah you're right." She was calmer but still unhappy. "I just wish there was an easier way to find them." Looking at the ground her eyes suddenly lit up. "Oh why didn't I think of this earlier." Reaching into her pocket she pulled out the kimmunicator. "Wake up Wade." The screen blinked to life showing a still wide awake Wade.

"What's up Kim?" He smiled before taking a drink from his every present soda.

"I need you to check for any connections between the locations that Stalker and Ribbon have been over the years."

"I've gotcha and then I'll check to see if anybody with the same connections is in the area. I let you know what I find." Wade began typing furiously on his keyboard as the screen went blank.

"Even when we're behind you are always on top of the game."

"That maybe true but I can't win them without you." She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Now you said something about blowing this pop stand."

* * *

Being that it was a brisk autumn night Ron suggested they enjoy a nice walk around town before heading back to the dorm. What he really wanted was to get Kim's mind on something else for awhile. It was clear out and the moon was lighting their way with its pale ambiance. Ron wrapped his arm around Kim's shoulders and pulled her close as they walked. The world melted away as they walked together.

They were almost back to the dorm when Kim spoke up. "I hope Wade gets us that info soon." Ron sighed, a perfectly good plan shot to hell.

"You know Kim they are doing the city a favor by taking out some of the criminal element."

"It's how they're doing it; they're reckless, unprofessional, and dangerous. And one of these times they are going to kill somebody. I just can't let that happen, it bothers me and it should bother you to."

Ron sighed again deep down he knew she was right but he was afraid that if she kept pushing this issue she would lose her objectivity, if she hadn't already. "It does, I just think you're pushing to hard on this that's all."

"I'm not pushing this at all I just want to take them down and soon. Even if I am you should be backing me on this." She stopped and turned, locking a deadly glare on him.

"Wait a minute that was uncalled for KP, you know I've always had your back." He felt his face flush as his anger began to rise. He couldn't lose his cool, not now, if he did it would push Kim to finish this on her own. Taking a deep breath he let his anger flow out with it. "Kim we are on the same side in this matter and that is what is important."

Kim was about to respond but Ron had already started to walk off, not quickly but at his normal leisurely pace. Realizing that he wasn't going to allow her to continue the argument she caught up and fell into step with him. They stayed silent with their own thoughts until they reached Ron's door.

"I'm sorry Ron, you're right you've always had my back and I know you always will. It's just that we've been trying so hard to stop those two and we keep coming up empty."

Ron spoke as he entered the main room. "I hear you, Stalker and Ribbon are a slippery pair but rest assured they are going down." Ron had turned to look at Kim as he spoke so only she noticed Cameron standing in the kitchen. His eyes almost seemed to flare at the mention of Stalker and Ribbon, but when she looked to confirm what she saw it was gone. "Oh hey Cam grabbing some snackage for an all nighter?"

"Snackage yes, all nighter no. My favorite show Rebuildin' is running a marathon can't miss any of that." He grabbed his plate of snacks. "So what have you two been up to, no good I bet." He gave a wink aimed at both of them. Before either could answer. "Well I'd love to stay and chat but the show must go on and so must I." He left with a grin plastered to his face and two teens in his wake.

"How does he always manage to sneak away before we can get him back?" Ron's eyebrow was cocked.

"Who knows, anyway it is getting late and we should get some sleep for once."

"You always know what's best." She grabbed Ron by his shirt and turned him towards her.

"Damn right I do. I know you'll always have my back but I sometimes need you in my face."

Her eyes locked with his and he knew that she was truly sorry for the comment she made earlier and now she was searching to see if he would forgive her. His answer was more then she expected. He bent down and kissed her. The kiss deepened as she leaned into him. They broke a moment later and just held each other.

"That was some goodnight kiss, maybe we should fight more often." She smacked him on the arm as he released her.

"I'll see you in the morning monkey boy."

* * *

Morning once again came too early for Ron. He cursed at the sun as he reluctantly tossed off his covers. The floor was cold enough to get him moving a little faster towards the bathroom but his speed didn't move much past that of a sloth. Stepping out of the bathroom 40 minutes later having finished with his shower in record time he quickly tossed on some clothes and headed for the door.

He flung the door open only to have to dodge a fist coming at his chest. "I didn't think we had that bad of a fight last night KP." He stood grinning at her.

"I was trying to knock on the door but somebody opened it before I could." Glaring at him in mock irritation she pushed into the room. "Besides if I wanted to hit you I would have."

"Right, that's what they all say. Nobody can touch the Rondo." He lurched forward from the impact on his shoulder. "Well only when I don't want them to." The arm cocked back again. "Alright I get it geez can't you let a guy have some fantasies."

"No."

"Ok fine, so what brings you down here this fine morning? Besides me that is." The look was just above freezing.

"Well I wanted to have some breakfast this morning but I got tired of waiting for a certain someone to get up. So how about you get something whipped up before I starve to death."

Ron gave her a very stern face before throwing her a salute and marching into the kitchen. He could hear her giggling as he went to work. They talked about this and that, the random things that had been going on in there classes. It turned to friendly banter as Kim started helping, which to Ron's surprise and Kim's as well worked out rather well. The previous evening not even a memory as they sat down to their breakfast.

"You never did tell me what you and Gwen talked about the other night." Kim gave him a confused look for a second before she caught on.

"Oh yeah, she was upset because he is being a typical male and doing something that is either going to get him hurt or in trouble." She noticed the look she was getting from Ron. "You're not typical. Anyway from the sounds of it he may have hurt himself already."

"I pretty much got the same story from Steve. Except he also told me he does whatever it is because of what happened to his dad, must have been rough on him having his dad shot by some punk kid in a botched holdup." He popped a piece of fruit into his mouth.

"Really, that's awful. No wonder he has a short fuse with people like that."

"No kidding. Anyway you might be right about him getting hurt, I think I saw some bandages on his back when we were talking." Ron started absentmindedly chewing on some bacon.

"Are you sure?" The question was so forceful Ron looked up confused.

"Well no but I saw something white on his back sticking out from under his shirt, it looked like gauze but I'm not positive. Why the sudden interest?"

"I think Steve could be Stalker."

"WHAT, how do you figure that?"

"Think about it. His dad is hurt by a kid trying to rob a place, Stalker has a real aggression towards criminals. He is out doing something that can get him hurt and you say you saw what looked to be bandages on his back, a spot I injured him in."

"Uh wrong KP. That last time you really nailed him was on his arm."

"Uh wrong Ron. The last time we fought them I put him through a window, back first. Unlike the movies that is going to cut you to shreds." Ron considered that for a moment. "Plus remember when I did hit his arm, Steve had it wrapped up the next day."

"Yeah but both he and Gwen said it came from football practice."

"That doesn't mean anything if she's working with him."

"What do you mean working with him? What could she be doing to help him…? You think she's Ribbon?"

"Could be, she has a strong gymnastics background. That would give her an advantage out there." Kim rubbed her brow.

"I don't know, I mean sure it seems to fit and all but it just doesn't feel right."

"I'm sure enough let's get moving and …" A knock at the door stopped her from finishing.

"It's open." Was all Ron could think to say at the moment. The door opened showing Gwen looking almost embarrassed to be standing there.

"Umm, have you two seen Steve? We were supposed to meet down at the cafeteria but he never showed up." Glancing over Ron noticed for the first time that the door was open and the room empty.

"I haven't seen him looks like he was up and gone before I was, sorry." He could feel the anger rolling off of Kim and he silently wished Gwen would leave.

"Oh ok thanks anyway."

"That drops down our number of people to ask where Steve is." The small laugh that followed had less to do with humor and more to do with nerves.

"Even so we need to find him and now." Reaching the outer door one of the bedroom doors opened reveling Cam, who was hobbling into view.

"I swear furniture is placed in just the right spots so you find them in the dark, with your leg."

Ron was about to respond when the kimmunicator sounded off. "What's the sitch Wade? You find anything out yet?"

"So far I haven't found any connections between the areas that those two have been to. However I did find to items you might be interested in. Stalker and Ribbon struck again last night, made a real mess of the area almost brought a building down."

"Perfect, they're dropping buildings while we're still trying to find them. Wade try to find a location on Steve."

"Um ok, why?"

"Kim believes he's Stalker and I have to say that the evidence does support it."

"So you want me to track him down. It'll be tough but I'll see what I can do." His fingers already dancing on the keyboard.

"Please and thank you."

"Tell then here is what I've dug up. The big cheese in this area is a guy by the name of Vernon Vasquez." Kim and Ron both exchanged shrugged shoulders. Wade saw the gesture. "I'm not surprised you haven't heard of him. He isn't talked about much and we normally deal with Super Villains. Anyway he is one tough hombre, rumored to be a professional hit man never proven though." Pausing to take a drink of his soda. "Looks as though Stalker and Ribbon have him spooked or pissed because he is holding a meeting tonight." The crashing of pans and silverware interrupted them.

Cam gripped the kitchen counter while staring down at the floor where the various items he had apparently dropped had landed. His face was pale and his knuckles where white from the force he was exerting in his grip. Neither feature was noticed by Kim nor Ron as their attention was drawn to the knife that was sticking straight out of the floor next to his foot.

"Uh…sorry about that guess I shouldn't try to juggle my utensils." His voice was light but his face betrayed his mood.

"Hey don't worry about it, you'll get better." The quip was light-hearted. He watched as Cam pulled the knife from the floor. As he did he noticed several bruises on his leg. Odd spot for them he thought as he headed out the door.

* * *

They had been searching for several hours with no luck. Both on and off campus they could find no sign of Steve. Giving up for the night they were heading back to the dorm.

"Maybe he caught wind that we knew who he was and he went to ground."

"It's possible but there wasn't much time between when we figured it out and when we started looking." She sighed. "We are so close to finally catching him."

"Maybe they moved on."

"I doubt that. Why would he start taking classes at the college if he was just going to leave."

"True." His expression match his mood, sour. Walking up one of the sidewalks a figure approached them. "Hey Cam, what's up?"

"Oh hey Ron, Kim. Any luck?"

"Not a lick of it." What are you heading off to? Ron pointed towards the bag slung over Cam's shoulder.

"I'm heading out for the weekend. Can't stay cooped up in the dorms for ever." Flashing them a cheery grin. "Doing that will drive you crazy. You two take it easy and I'll see you later."

"You too."

"Bye Cam." Kim waved as he walked away.

"Maybe he has the right idea. Just getting away from it all for the weekend."

"When this is done Ron. We are to close, I can't let him get away now." Sighing in defeat Ron put his arm around her shoulder.

"Ok but at least let me make you some dinner tonight."

"Deal."

* * *

"Looks like everyone is gone." The room was dark as Kim stepped in and flipped the switch. "You know where to start. I'm going to get out of these dirty clothes and into something more comfortable."

"Oh sure you get to clean up but I'm stuck making dinner."

"It was your idea, remember." Ron's retort died in his throat as the truth caught him.

"Oh yeah."

"Right, oh yeah. Now get in there and stop complaining." Smacking him on the shoulder and pointing at the fridge.

"Yes ma'am." His head hung low and the words barely crawled out of his mouth but the twinkle in his eye told the truth. Rummaging in the kitchen he found practically nothing of use. "Hey KP, you don't have enough food in here to feed Rufus." He paused at the thought. "Ok bad example but you don't have much in here."

"I guess we could go out."

"No I said I'd cook so that is what I'm going to do. Give me a minute and I'll get some stuff from my place." Without waiting for a reply he was bounding out the door.

He skidded to the door and with surprising ease pulled the key from his pocket, unlocked the door, and had it back in his pocket before he stopped moving. Slapping a satisfied grin on his face he opened the door. All of the lights were on in the main room. _Strange_ he thought _everyone's gone_.

"It's the legend himself Ron Stoppable." Ron's heart nearly stopped as it jumped into his throat. Swallowing hard he turned to look where the voice had come from.

"Oh uh hey Steve… you have…I mean how was…uh yeah." His mind spun as he tried to grasp what had just occurred. They had spent all day looking for Steve and he turns up back at the room.

"You ok Ron; you look like you just saw a ghost."

"Yeah, hey I'm great, never better, you know the Rondo. I just remembered I left something up with KP." He was out the door before either could say another word.

The door flew open so fast Kim thought someone had kicked it. "Ron what the heck are you doing?"

"Steve, Gwen…" Was all he could manage as he gasped for air, having run up the stairs. Taking a second to gather himself. "They're down in the room."

"What?"

"They're downstairs like right now." He had barely caught his breath before he was drug out the door.

* * *

Steve had just popped open the fridge when the door came crashing open. "There you are!" Green eyes narrowed as they burned into him.

"Hey Kim, Gwen already found me so don't worry about it." Flashing a lopsided grin as he finished.

"I wasn't looking for you for Gwen; I've been looking for you for myself."

"Well you found me, what can I do for you?" He leaned against the counter as Gwen came into the room.

"You can give up without a fight."

"I'm sorry, what?" A confused smile still on his face.

"I know all about your late night activities." The expression on Steve's face dropped.

"I don't see how that is any of your concern." Folding his arms across his chest. "Besides what do you have against it?"

"What do I have against it?" She could barely contain herself. "Only that it is dangerous not to mention stupid." Steve rolled his eyes as a muffled beeping sound emanated from Kim's pocket. "Just give it up." The beeping returned.

"You going to get that?" Asked Gwen.

"Shut up." Without moving her gaze from him. "You're coming with me." Her last comment finally broke his last nerve.

"First of all you do not talk to her like that or so help me I throw you out of this room." Raising to his full height his arms dropped loosely to his sides. "In fact I think you better leave right the hell now." Bone popped as his hands wrapped into fists.

"I'm not going to tell you again." She dropped back a step into a stance from the clearly agitated mountain before her. Beeping once again is heard.

"So you're going to attack me, real heroic of you."

"That slam so hurts coming from a vigilant such as yourself." Confusion spread along his face once again.

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't play dumb with me I know you're Stalker."

"You've lost it. How can you even think I'm that guy? Besides you don't have any proof."

"What do you call all of those injuries you've been having plus the one on your back. You going to tell me you got all of those from football."

"I don't have to explain anything to you."

"Fine explain it to the cops." Pulling out the kimmunicator which was now continuously beeping. "Whatever it is Wade it can wait, I need you to get the cops here now."

"For the last time I'm not Stalker."

"Stuff it."

"He's telling the truth Kim."

"What!"

"That's why I've been trying to reach you. You've got the wrong guy."


End file.
